So, how did we end up in this little village by the Japanese alps? Well to begin with, even though I've traveled quite a bit before (thanks to my parents who are globe trotters and have taken my sister and me to many places growing up), I was a bit nervous to travel to Japan. The crowds, the ever present neon lights, and the entirely unique culture made me worried I'd feel like Bill Murray in Lost in Translation. So I decided to find something I could balance between what I knew about big cities in Japan with a more rural vibe, and that's how I found a small town called Takayama in the Hida mountains. This is a town that the Japan government has nationally recognized as a “Historic Streetscape” where they fund, protect, and preserve these areas as cultural properties.
^ click through this slideshow to see the town!
Walking through Takayama really gave us a feeling of what the town must have been like in the 18th century, when it was a rich and wealthy merchant city during the Edo period (1600-1868). This period in Japan had strong economic growth, and was a booming time for Japanese arts and culture. Due to its location in the mountains and alongside a large river, Takayama was able to isolate from other parts of the country, yet thrive in their agriculture and crafts. It was really calming to walk through this area, filled with shops, charming cafes, and restaurants!
By keeping themselves isolated, Takayama has retained and nurtured their customs and crafts over centuries. Many of the shops selling pottery or furniture, sake breweries, and restaurants, have stayed in the same family for many generations (we saw a soba noodle shop that has kept the same family recipe for almost 400 years!)
Hida Na Sato
In order to showcase what the countryside looked like hundreds of years ago, the Japanese government recreated a folk village known as "Hida Na Sato" as an open-air museum. Many of these traditional buildings feature exhibits showing how people lived in the Hida region, such as trades that people worked in, or tools they used to survive the cold winters and hot summers. It was also the first time we saw some autumn leaves here, and it was clear enough to see the Japanese alps!
Showa retro museum
Another fun thing we did in Takayama was the Showa Retro museum. The Showa period in Japan is from 1920s-1980s, and the word Showa means “bright peace” and “harmony” - Japan even has a public holiday on April 29 for it. This period is significant for modern day Japan, because although they experienced incredible devastation from WWII and the atomic bombings in 1940s, they also showed great optimism to rebuild their economy by encouraging urbanization and Western influences. This dedication paid off, as Japan had the second largest economy in the world by 1952! It was awesome to explore this museum, as it really showed what the integration between East and West was like, with gadgets, movie posters, action figures and toys that are representative of pop culture and fashion at the time. Whoever did the hard work of collecting (or hoarding 😬 ) all these things, really is giving visitors a tremendous experience to see what kind of places or things our grandparents' generation had.
They also recreated rooms to show what they typically looked like in the 1950s, things like classrooms, barbershops, post offices, etc, and it's awesome because nothing is glassed off - you can pick up and play with everything you see. We especially loved the small video game area where they had Nintendo, Intellivision, and other 80s era game consoles to sit and play with. Not to mention we got to try Pachinko and I can totally see why people are addicted to this… way more fun than a slot machine, I think.
Train through the towns
If you’ve already seen Tokyo and Kyoto and have the time and desire to see a slower part of Japan, I highly recommend visiting towns in the mountains of Gifu. Another great part is taking the Hida wide view train through this mountainous region, it is filled with nonstop views 😍
A charming piece about a charming place. Quite a treat for culture vultures!